Grading permits, perc tests and 811 in the San Bernardino valley
Shandin Excavation puts this page up because the permit question comes before the price question on half the calls. The contractor who takes your job pulls the permits; knowing which office and what triggers one lets you plan the schedule and the budget before anyone digs.
Who issues the grading permit in each city
San Bernardino
City of San Bernardino Public Works and Building and Safety issue grading permits; the city is on sewer almost everywhere, so septic is rare outside the Verdemont edge.
Highland
City of Highland Public Works issues grading permits; the city is on sewer through EVWD except for a few older parcels on the foothill edge.
Redlands
City of Redlands Municipal Utilities and Engineering issues grading permits; the city is on sewer with a few septic parcels in the south hills and Live Oak Canyon edge.
Yucaipa
City of Yucaipa Building and Safety issues grading permits and has reviewed septic systems itself since the county LAMP stopped covering cities in 2018.
Rancho Cucamonga
City of Rancho Cucamonga Engineering Services issues grading permits; the city is on Cucamonga Valley Water District sewer, with a few septic holdouts north of Hillside Road.
Fontana
City of Fontana Engineering issues grading permits; sewer through the city, with the old south Fontana half acre lots the main septic pocket until they tie in.
Rialto
City of Rialto Public Works issues grading permits; the city is on Rialto sewer with the north Rialto edge near Lytle Creek the only septic pocket.
Colton
City of Colton Public Works issues grading permits; the city runs its own sewer utility, so no septic except a few parcels on the Reche Canyon edge.
Loma Linda
City of Loma Linda Public Works issues grading permits and enforces a hillside ordinance on the South Hills slopes; the city is on sewer throughout.
Devore
San Bernardino County Land Use Services issues grading permits and County Environmental Health reviews septic under the county LAMP; this is county land, not city.
The rules that apply everywhere
- 1
811 before every dig
California Government Code 4216 requires a locate ticket through California 811 at least two working days before excavation, for a pool, a trench or a pad. The utilities mark their lines in paint and flags, and the contractor hand digs within two feet of a mark.
- 2
Cal/OSHA trench protection past five feet
Title 8 section 1541 requires sloping, benching or a trench shield in any trench five feet or deeper, a ladder within 25 feet of workers, and a competent person inspecting daily. Sewer laterals to a deep main and septic tank holes hit this routinely.
- 3
Licensing
Excavation and grading is CSLB Class A (General Engineering) or C-12 (Earthwork and Paving); septic installation adds C-42. Any contract over $1,000 in labor and materials requires a license, and you can verify one in a minute on the CSLB site.
- 4
Compaction and inspection
A pad under a structure is compacted to 90 percent relative compaction in most cities, tested by a soils lab at each lift on an engineered pad. The inspector sees the open trench, the bedding and the pipe before backfill on a lateral or a septic line.
- 5
ADU rules
State law requires cities to approve a detached ADU up to 800 square feet on nearly any single family lot, and the building permit covers the pad. The grading permit is separate when drainage changes or the lot slopes.
Septic in the county versus the cities
San Bernardino County adopted its Local Agency Management Program for onsite wastewater in 2018. It sets the percolation test method, the setbacks from wells and property lines and the plot plan requirements for every system in the unincorporated area, which in this service area means Devore, Muscoy and the Reche Canyon edge. The incorporated cities review their own systems since then; Yucaipa carries the most, Redlands and Loma Linda a handful on the hill edges. The excavation side is the same either way: perc test holes dug to the engineer’s depth, then the tank hole and the leach trenches once the design is approved.
Sources
- CSLB license classifications, including Class A, C-12 and C-42
- Cal/OSHA Title 8 section 1541, excavation and trench protective systems
- California 811, locate tickets and the two working day rule
- California HCD accessory dwelling unit handbook
- San Bernardino County Land Use Services, grading permits for the unincorporated area
- California Geological Survey, alluvial fan and landslide mapping for the valley
Ask a licensed contractor which permits your job needs
Call (443) 364-3676 or send the form below and one licensed contractor calls you back within one business day.
Permit questions
When do I need a grading permit?
In most valley cities when you move more than 50 cubic yards of dirt, cut or fill more than a few feet, or change how water leaves the lot. An ADU pad on a slope almost always qualifies. A flat lot with a small pad often needs only a site plan with the building permit.
What is an 811 ticket and who files it?
A free locate request to California 811 that gets the gas, electric, water and telecom companies to mark their lines. State law requires it at least two working days before any dig. The contractor files it, and the marks have to be visible when the machine arrives.
Who reviews a septic system now, the county or the city?
Depends on the address. Unincorporated areas like Devore and Muscoy go through San Bernardino County Environmental Health under the county LAMP. Since May 2018 each incorporated city, including Yucaipa and Redlands, reviews systems inside its own limits.
Do I need a soils report for an ADU pad?
On a hillside lot, yes, and the city may add a geologist review. On a flat lot a compaction report from the grader at the end of the job is usually all the building inspector asks for.
What does Cal/OSHA require for a trench?
Title 8 section 1541 requires a protective system, meaning sloped or benched walls or a trench shield, in any trench five feet or deeper, and a competent person on site inspecting it daily. It is the reason a deep sewer lateral costs more than a shallow one.